This paper presents Irish-medium immersion (IMI) teachers' perceptions of their development of content knowledge of language (CK-L) and pedagogical content knowledge of language (PCK-L) as a result of engaging in form-focused professional development (PD) which combined both content knowledge and pedagogical learning outcomes. An intervention,…

This ethnographic study explores how elementary school children's participation in a culturally diverse music program, which featured their active engagement in group music-making and their acquaintance with the cultural-historical context of the music, affected them on interpersonal, collective, and social levels. The study focuses on the…

Although there is a plethora of tools available to assess children's movement competence (MC), the literature suggests that many have significant limitations (e.g. not being practical for use in many 'real-world' settings). The FMS[superscript 2] assessment tool has recently been developed as a targeted solution to many of the existing barriers…

Parental support or resistance has been widely recognised as an important factor that enables or constrains the implementation of quality Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE). This paper analyses parental experiences of involvement and engagement with Gender Equality Matters (GEM), an educational programme focused on raising awareness,…

This paper offers insight into teachers' perspectives on the role of manipulatives in the mathematics classroom on either side of the primary to post-primary transition (sixth class teachers in Irish primary schools and first year mathematics teachers in post-primary schools) to examine if discontinuities exist around their usage. The transition…

Given the significant role that academic self-concept plays in students' learning, understanding the psychological processes involved in its formation continues to be an important focus of enquiry. There is strong empirical support for two major models of academic self-concept (ASC) formation: the big-fish-little-pond (BFLP) model and the…

Second Language Pragmatics (L2 pragmatics) research focused on the study abroad (SA) context points out the benefits of this context for second language (L2) pragmatic development while also illustrating the non-linearity of this development, as it is shaped by different contextual factors and individual differences. Nevertheless, this research…

STEM family e-learning involves increasing the engagement in STEM home learning activities. STEM home learning activities range from exploring subjects such as science technology, engineering, and maths through a fun play based K-6 STEM curriculum. The family are trained to act as teachers, mentors, and coaches to the K-6 members. Families from…

Background: There is increasing recognition of the contribution of affective factors such as motivation to the development of reading competence. Reading activity is theorised to mediate associations between motivation and achievement, but this has been tested empirically only rarely. Method: This study employed structural equation modelling to…

In recent decades, Ireland has experienced an increase in diversity due to immigration. The purpose of this study is to explore how three Irish-born primary-grade children of Nigerian immigrants in Ireland, one girl and two boys in the 5th and 6th grades, describe experiences of racism and perceive being Irish in a predominantly White, but…

Children comprise many of the visitors to zoos every year, yet few studies have explored the impact of a zoo visit on children's learning. This study employed a repeated measure design using data gathered from 500 questionnaires to investigate students' knowledge, attitude, and behavior before and after visiting a zoo or aquarium in Ireland. A…

Building on the various works of theorists pertaining to curriculum negotiation, the Negotiated Integrated Curriculum (NIC) initiative detailed in this article attempts to redress the imbalance within curricular decision-making whereby student voice and learner agency is largely absent. The NIC initiative enquires into students' concerns about…

This study set out to explore levels of religious affect (measured by the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity) and personal affect (measured by the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire) among samples of Catholic students in the Republic of Ireland attending fifth- and sixth-year classes (N = 3015) and Catholic students in Northern Ireland…

This article investigates how development education campaigns affect schoolchildren's understanding of both global and domestic poverty, through examining the 2012 Lenten campaign by the Irish agency, Trócaire. It analyses Trócaire campaign material as well as its reception by schoolchildren, aged 10-12. We found the material contained…

Background: Recent effectiveness studies have investigated the relationship between two dimensions of effectiveness -- namely, quality and equity. Specifically, the question of whether effective schools can also reduce the initial differences in student outcomes attributed to student background factors has been examined. In this context, the…